IMAX Films for Field Trips

Through IMAX technology and the giant screen, journey to places where your students can be inspired without leaving their seats. See, hear and feel more with crystal-clear images displayed on 9,000 square feet of wraparound screen plus 13,000 watts of digital surround sound.

The Hackworth IMAX Dome Theater holds 280 guests, and seating is available on a first-come, first-served basis. School groups qualify for a special group rate. Please ask about this opportunity when making your reservations.

See our calendar for regular IMAX film showings. If you are a group of 50 or more, the 10 a.m. and 11 a.m. time slots can be reserved with a film of your choosing from our library (see below). Showtimes and IMAX films are based upon availability.

IMAX Film Library

Showtimes and IMAX films are based upon availability.

“Amazon Adventure”
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Amazon Adventure tells the story of Henry Bates, whose 11-year journey through the Amazon rainforest led to crucial contributions in biology. Bates identified 8,000 new species; discovered the mind-boggling “Batesian” mimicry phenomenon, in which edible animals deceive predators by adopting the look of poisonous animals; and collected the first evidence of speciation, or the birth of new species. This discovery became known as the “beautiful proof” for natural selection. Come see how current genetic research is uncovering the microscopic mechanisms behind speciation in the same animals at the heart of Bates’ discoveries 150 years ago.
Educator website

“America’s Musical Journey”
Now Playing
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America’s Musical Journey celebrates the diverse music and creative risk-taking spirit that characterize America. Follow Grammy-nominated singer/songwriter Aloe Blacc as he traces Louis Armstrong’s footsteps through the colorful locales where America’s music was born—iconic cities like New Orleans, Chicago, Detroit, New York City, Nashville, Miami and more—and meet the artists, music makers, storytellers and innovators who are shaping America’s culture today.
Educator resources

"Dream Big: Engineering Our World"
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The first giant-screen film to focus specifically on STEM, "Dream Big" celebrates the engineers who are pushing the limits of ingenuity and innovation in unexpected, amazing and forward-thinking ways. In partnership with the American Society of Civil Engineers, join us as we explore how we use science and technology to invent, design, build and shape our world.
Educator website

"Extreme Weather"
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Weather is one of the most dynamic forces shaping our planet, but now it's more complex than ever. "Extreme Weather" takes us where few have gone. Travel to the edge of collapsing 300-foot-tall glaciers, to the front lines of massive wildfires, and directly in the path of deadly but mesmerizing tornadoes. Follow researchers and everyday heroes as they uncover surprising connections to help us understand and adapt to our ever-changing weather.
Educator website

"Forces of Nature"
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Available in Spanish
Nearly 500,000 earthquakes, more than 1,000 tornadoes and about 50 volcanoes erupt around the world each year. The science stories in "Forces of Nature" are augmented with digital sequences designed to illustrate the inner workings of these events. "Forces of Nature" allows moviegoers to experience what it's like when the ground shakes, mountains explode and the sky turns black and violent. Follow scientists on their groundbreaking quests to understand how these natural disasters are triggered. Learn what is being done to predict and prepare for these events — and minimize their destructive forces.
Educator guide (all ages)

“Great White Shark”
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Misrepresented, maligned and misunderstood, the great white shark is an iconic predator. The creature we love to fear. “Great White Shark” explores this shark’s place in our imaginations, in our fears, and in the reality of its role at the top of the oceanic food chain. Shot on location in South Africa, New Zealand, Mexico and California, the film looks to find the truth behind the creature made famous in the 1975 blockbuster “Jaws.”
Educator website

"Humpback Whales"
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Available in Spanish
An extraordinary journey into the mysterious world of one of nature's most awe-inspiring marine mammals, "Humpback Whales" takes audiences to Alaska, Hawaii and the Kingdom of Tonga for an immersive look at how the creatures communicate, sing, feed, play and care for their young. Captured for the first time with IMAX cameras, the humpbacks' secrets are unlocked by a team of intrepid researchers — join their adventure on our giant screen.
Educator website

"Jerusalem"
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Available in Spanish
"Jerusalem" takes you on an inspiring and eye-opening tour of one of the world's oldest and most enigmatic cities. Destroyed and rebuilt countless times over the past 5,000 years, Jerusalem's enduring appeal remains a mystery. What made it so important to so many different cultures? How did it become the center of the world for three major religions? Why does it still matter to us?
Educator materials
Spiritual study guides

"Journey to Space"
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Available in Spanish
Come see exciting plans for the next giant leap into space: landing humans on Mars. "Journey to Space" will take audiences behind the scenes of the international effort to prepare and send astronauts to Mars within 20 years. The film is an inspiring reflection on the remarkable achievements of NASA's Space Shuttle program, including the assembly and launch of the International Space Station and the deployment of the Hubble Space Telescope. "Journey to Space" is a celebration of space exploration, a tribute to international cooperation in space research, and a vision of our near future beyond Earth's orbit.
Educator guide (all ages)

"Lewis & Clark: Great Journey West"
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With stunning aerial cinematography and meticulous reenactments, "Lewis & Clark: Great Journey West" dramatizes the legendary early 19th-century expedition that crossed the uncharted North American West. Join a mission that tested the explorers' courage; an expedition that challenged their resolve; and a journey that shaped a nation.
Educator guide (all ages)
Route Maps: Expedition / Westward

"Mysteries of the Unseen World"
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Available in Spanish
Journey into the microscopic world and see a whole new universe once reserved only for scientists' eyes. Thanks to this film's innovative use of high-speed and time-lapse photography, electron microscopy and nanotechnology, audiences will see things not visible to the naked eye. Visually stunning and rooted in cutting-edge research, the setting and story are pure entertainment, but the science is breathtakingly real.
Educator resources

"National Parks Adventure"
Available in Spanish
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Go on the ultimate off-trail adventure into America's awe-inspiring great outdoors. For 100 years, spectacularly wild and beautiful places such as Yellowstone, Yosemite, the Everglades and the Redwoods have been a living monument to our nation's vast and untamed wilderness. "National Parks Adventure" celebrates the majesty of these treasured landscapes.
Educator resources

"Pandas"
Now Playing
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At Chengdu Panda Base in China, scientists are dedicated to protecting the species by breeding adult Giant Pandas in order to introduce cubs into the wild. This film follows one such researcher, whose passion leads her to initiate a new technique inspired by a black bear program in rural New Hampshire. What starts as a cross-culture collaboration becomes a life-changing journey for an American biologist who crosses an ocean to join her; a scientist from Inner Mongolia; and a very curious female cub named Qian Qian, born in captivity. Join Qian Qian on an exciting new adventure in the mountains of Sichuan as she takes her first steps outside her protected habitat, discovering her true animal nature...even as she faces the challenges of the unknown.

“To the Limit”
A great choice to add to your visit to Body Worlds: Decoded
"To the Limit" explores the outer limits of human performance, but what of the equally amazing internal orchestrations of the human body that make such physical acts possible? "To the Limit" presents scenes from inside the body that reveal its miraculous ability to adapt to the demands of intense physical action. Special camera equipment developed just for this film takes you on a “miniature helicopter ride” through the heart, arteries, and even down to the microscopic level to witness the actual oxygen exchange of red blood cells in tiny air sacs of the lungs. Featuring famed American rock climber Tony Yaniro, champion ski racer Maria Walliser and Bolshoi Ballet prima ballerina Nina Ananiashvili, "To the Limit" defines and explores entirely new realms of cinematic experience.

"Under the Sea"
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Available in Spanish
Actor Jim Carrey is the narrator/tour guide for a stunning journey into the world's most beautiful and remote coral reefs. Be transported to some of the most exotic and isolated undersea locations on Earth, including Southern Australia, New Guinea and others in the Indo-Pacific region. Experience face-to-face encounters with some of the most mysterious and stunning creatures of the sea. "Under the Sea" offers a uniquely inspirational and entertaining way to explore the impact that global climate change has had on ocean wilderness.

Educator guide (Grades 3-5)
Educator guide (Grades 6-8)